“You’re asking the wrong person. I’ve never been in love either. I’m not wired for it.”
“How do you mean?”
“I mean, some people are good at getting out of their heads and letting someone else have, I don’t know, unfettered access to them—all their flaws and imperfections. Revealing themselves. That’s never going to be me.”
She was quiet for a moment, her fingers still moving on my chest. “Do you think something is wrong with us? I sometimes wonder if I’m cursed or something.”
“No,” I said firmly. “I think we’re just fine. In fact, I think we’re smarter than everyone, because we know ourselves so well.”
She sat up and looked down at me. “Yes, exactly. What good does it do to stay in a relationship you know won’t work out?”
“If we’re cursed, it’s with superior intelligence and keen self-awareness.”
She laughed. “Yes! We know our strengths and weaknesses. We know that if we can’t swim, we don’t jump in the deep end of the pool. We stay in the shallow part.”
“Or we skip the swim and stay in bed,” I said, tugging her close to me again. “There’s a lot of fun to be had in bed.”
“There is with you.” She swung a leg over my hips so she straddled me. “More than I ever thought possible.”
TWELVE
FELICITY
If the private jet we flew in to get to Manhattan made me feel like a rock star, our suite at The Pierre made me feel like royalty.
“Hutton! Look at this view!” I stood in front of the windows overlooking Central Park from twenty-eight stories up.
“I’ve seen it.” He came over and stood next to me, chuckling at my excitement. “But it is impressive.”
“It’s more than impressive—it’s unreal! This whole day is unreal!” I spun around and took in the surroundings. Our suite had a living room with a fireplace, a master bedroom with a sumptuous king-sized bed and views of the Manhattan skyline, and a dining table with six chairs that looked like they belonged at Versailles. I took out my phone and started snapping photos of everything for my sisters. I’d already sent them selfies of me sipping a glass of champagne in the luxurious cabin of the jet and riding in the back of the shiny black SUV with tinted windows on the way to the hotel.
“We should get going,” he said.
“Are you going to tell me where?”
“No. That’s the whole point of a surprise.”
“You hate surprises.”
“I hate being surprised,” he corrected. “There’s a difference.”
“Let me just get a few pics of the bathroom.”
He laughed as I darted through the bedroom to the master bath, where I captured the long marble vanity, soaking tub with city views, and plush white robes. Will try to pilfer one for you, Win, I texted.
“It will still be here when we get back,” Hutton said from the doorway. Leaning against the frame, he stuck his hands in his pockets and met my eyes in the mirror.
“I know. Sorry, you’re probably used to all this luxury,” I said sheepishly. “But I’m more of a budget traveler, so this is pretty cool to me. And chances are I’m only going to be the fake fiancée of a billionaire once in my life, so I want to make the most of it.”
He laughed. “Go ahead. We can leave when you’re ready.”
My stomach muscles tightened—he was so handsome in his blue dress pants and white button-down. He was pretty casual every day, but I loved that he’d dressed up a little to travel. “Am I dressed okay? You look so nice, and I’m in jeans.”
“You can wear anything you want.”
“And I’ll have time to come home and change before dinner, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then I just need a minute.”
“No problem. I’m going to check in with my assistant on our tickets for tonight.”
He left me alone in the bedroom, where I traded my sneakers for flat sandals and my cotton blouse for a nicer top. In the bathroom, I tightened my ponytail, cleaned my glasses, and refreshed my lipstick. I had no idea where he was taking me, but honestly, I didn’t even care. Peanuts and beer at a ball game? Great. Views from the top of the Empire State Building? Fantastic. Cruise by the Statue of Liberty? Rice noodles in Chinatown? Cannolis on Mulberry Street? If it was the two of us, I was in.
In fact, as we rode the elevator down to the lobby, slipped out a side door into the leather back seat of the chauffeured SUV, and traveled along 5th Avenue, I tried to think of another time in my life when I’d been so carefree and happy and alive.